About the Private Forum

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Welcome to the Speedsolving.com Private Forum

Anyone and everyone is welcome to read the content in this forum, just like the rest of the Speedsolving.com site. The only difference between this forum and the rest of the forum is that only certain members are allowed to post in this forum.

The idea is to have a forum where only members who have contributed quality content/ideas/thoughts can discuss stuff (beginners/newcomers are welcome if you can prove to provide quality insight into discussions throughout the rest of the forum). This forum will somewhat act as a role model to the rest of the forum - write quality content and you are then allowed to write in the private forum. The idea isn't to draw away from the quality of the rest of the forum, but more so allow people to discuss without all the noise that exists, and to improve the quality of content posted throughout the entire forum.

Why does this forum exist?
For many years, we have been working on improving the issue of post quality. As the site grows, more people join and discussion become less intimate and more cluttered. Users have begun making worthless posts that either a) already exist, or b) contribute nothing. People don't come here to read that stuff. After heavy moderation and many rearrangements in the forum, the post quality is still a big issue. In an effort to continue to improve the overall post quality of the forum, this private forum was created not only as a role model, but to allow discussion to occur among people who not only genuinely care about a topic, but have something to add to the discussion. Often times a thread comes up that doesn't interest you, or has content that you don't know or understand. In that case, it is likely best not to reply and to let others discuss it. This way the discussion flows more smoothly and ideas/thoughts become more constructive.

Who is allowed to post?
Ideally, we want anyone who can provide quality insight into a discussion. This includes anyone who can do that. Before you request access to post in the forum, please post in the regular forum to prove yourself. People come to Speedsolving.com to learn and to communicate with other solvers from around the world. Only post if you have something of value to add to a discussion or something worth saying. Replies like "+1" or "go search" or "lol" or flaming posts are not allowed, and contribute nothing. Users will and have been penalized throughout the forum for doing this and in certain situations have been removed from the forum. It is often better to not post and just read! We are looking for users who:
- have shown that they can communicate effectively (such as using correct grammar and punctuation). No one likes to decipher a random mess of text.
- have demonstrated that they are willing to help others with their issues.
- have shown insight into discussion that helps construct and develop an idea.
- has repeated the points above over a period of at least a month.

A few points to consider throughout the forum:
1. Read the entire thread before posting. This should seem obvious but we see of ton of people posting what has already been said earlier in a thread. We have also seen people post on topics far outside the thread topic because they didn't bother reading it properly. The question you're asking may already be answered. Don't make someone else do the work of finding the answer when it is already written down in front of you.

2. Lurk. It's okay to not post on something you find interesting. Things like "wow, that's cool" are nice and all, but don't really contribute to anything. If you are going to quote someone just to say "I agree" you can either not post or say something like "I agree because _______" This does not really apply to solve videos, saying "congrats" on a video of a WR etc even though 10 other people have said "congrats" or "wow fast" is to be expected. But you don't need to reply to everything. Only reply when you can add to the quality of the discussion. Reading is fine without posting your opinion. Post count is irrelevant, so don't take that as a factor in your recognition. If you made 1 quality/insightful post, I can assure you people will recognize you. You will find many members here who have <50 posts who have contributed a lot to the quality of this site.

3. Search function. Please look beyond the first page of results. It's okay to bump an old topic if you are adding something to it or want to see people's current opinion on something. Keep in mind there are over 600,000 posts - there is a very good chance the question you're about to ask has already been discussed and answered here. If you search for more than 10 minutes and can't find anything, then go ahead and create a new topic and tell us you've tried to search, and we will help you locate the answer.

As for members who are already in: it is simple, if someone begins to cause problems or create noise, they will simply be removed from the private forum. We are looking forward to quality discussion, and only posts that actually mean something or contribute something. If someone does otherwise, they will be removed, no questions asked.

Whether you are in the private forum or not, please think when you post, write so people can understand you, and provide insight that others haven't already posted. Learn from the forum, use it, but don't ruin it. Help new solvers get involved, we were all there at some point. Let's grow the speedcubing hobby, and make everyone feel welcome. It will make this site a better resource for all of us.

If you're interesting in posting the the private forum, you can submit an application here. The more thorough your application, the more we can learn about you and the more likely you are to be accepted.